Camp Goa'uld
by BizzyLizzy
Summary: SG1 pursue a goa'uld who is at large on Earth. FINISHED.
1. Part one

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SPOILERS: Descent.

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DISCLAIMER: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-1, the goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-1 Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.

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Camp Go'auld

Part One

'Why is it that whenever you guys screw up you come running to us to sort it out?' Jack demanded of Jacob Carter angrily.

'I know it must seem like it, but you have to realise…' 

'I know - this go'auld is on earth, if we don't do something about him then we're in big trouble.' Jack interrupted Jacob's reply. 'The Tok'ra can't come here to track him down themselves, so we're stuck doing your dirty work again just because you've managed to let him escape.'

'Jack, believe me I'm as angry about this as you - don't forget my favourite planet is at stake here. And before you say anything,' Jacob held his hand up to halt Jack, whose mouth was half open to respond to this, 'Earth is my favourite planet - ok?'

General Hammond, deciding the altercation between Jack and Jacob had gone far enough, took control of the situation.

'This go'auld - Sar'ash - was on Anubis's ship, the one you crashed into the ocean and has managed to survive somehow.' Hammond summarised the situation.

'I'm afraid so,' Jacob said. 'We weren't sure until a week ago when one of our operatives who had been on Anubis's ship informed us Sar'ash remained behind when Anubis abandoned it and that he was not one of the men killed by Teal'c when we arrived on the scene.'

'And as we haven't found any signs of him on board that ship, we have to assume he is alive and out there somewhere. Sweet.' Jack pulled a face. Not only had they lost the ship, now it looked as though they had a bigger problem on their hands.

'How do we know he's still here?' Sam asked.

'Reports have been filtering in for some time now about a mysterious cult that has sprung up near a place called Whitefish in Montana, a remote area in the Rockies.' Jonas informed them, having been called upon by the General to undertake this research. 'There are unconfirmed reports of groups of people being brought in at regular intervals and that the leader's eyes glow.'

'Well that sounds familiar.' Jack muttered, grimacing as he realised what this meant. 'So - when do we leave?' He asked, resigned to his fate now.

'Major Davis has contacted the local authorities giving you jurisdiction in this matter,' Hammond informed him. 'But you need to contain the situation as close to their base as possible - if this gets out into the wider community…' He didn't need to spell out the potential for disaster if this occurred. 'SG1, SG3 and SG9 will be deployed, along with Jacob. Colonel, you will be in charge of the operation. You can call on the local authorities for additional support and I'm also holding SG2, 6 and 15 in reserve, they will come up in forty eight hours unless you can assure me the situation has been contained.' Hammond looked at the people sat around the briefing room for any questions, then dismissed them to their preparations.


	2. Part two

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Camp Go'auld

Part two

Teal'c froze in his tracks, one hand raised to bring the rest of SG1 to a halt behind him. Immediately they concealed themselves away from the track they were on as the sounds of someone running, and being pursued, came to their ears.

They had arrived at Whitefish that morning, and after checking out the arrangements put in place for them, Jack had led the SG teams to the area near the compound of the suspected go'auld. SG3 and SG9 along with Jacob were scouting in other parts of the wood, Jack opting to take the area closest to the compound for his own team. Now it seemed that something was afoot.

Signalling rapidly to the rest of his team, Jack slipped away from them, allowing them to deal with whoever was in pursuit. Moving silently, his path through the bushes mirrored that of the person being followed, easily keeping up while maintaining his concealed position. Taking in the harrowed look on the victims face, the desperate glances behind which hadn't yet registered that the pursuit had ceased, Jack acted, dropping behind the victim as he simultaneously grasped her around the waist pinning her arms to her side and placed his free hand over her mouth to stop her calling out and alerting the pursuit as to their location.

The victim struggled, trying to break free of the strong grasp in which she was held, but unable to do so until at last she stopped fighting him but remained tense while Jack murmured in her ear.

'I'm Colonel Jack O'Neill of the US air force. I'm here to help. I need you to keep quiet while the rest of my team deal with whoever was after you.'

Nodding to indicate she understood, she allowed Jack to move her off the trail and conceal them both, to ensure anyone escaping the rest of his team would not stumble across them. Jack loosened the hand he had over her mouth, instantly regretting his decision as sharp teeth clamped down on the fleshy part of his hand and an elbow dug into his stomach and she was free, taking off down the path.

Cursing under his breath, Jack moved to follow but was overtaken by a swiftly moving figure which could only be Teal'c, running a lot faster than a normal human could. Pausing just long enough to check Jonas and Carter were following, Jack caught up to where Teal'c had the woman in a secure grip. The woman was struggling and attempting to kick Teal'c, but Teal'c remained unperturbed, maintaining his hold on the woman having witnessed what had happened when Jack had let his guard down. 

'We're on your side, we're here to help,' Jack said, trying to convince her they were the good guys. 'What's your name?'

The woman stared at him, distrust evident in her eyes as she watched him, trying to figure out whether she could trust these people or not. The situation seemed destined to remain at stalemate until Jonas stepped forward.

'I'm Jonas. It's true what the Colonel says - we heard there was something going on up here and we came to investigate. That's when we came across those guys chasing you.' Jonas smiled at her reassuringly, his open features encouraging the woman to trust him. 'You don't have to worry, we took care of them. Some of our colleagues are dealing with them now.' Jonas paused, then continued. 'This is Colonel O'Neill, Teal'c and Major Carter.' 

The woman looked at him, hesitated and then spoke for the first time. 'There are more of them. There's something weird going on back there. I…I managed to get away when I figured out that something was wrong. I guess they found out though. We have to get away, they'll send more after me, I know they will.' Her voice had an edge of panic to it.

'You come from there?' Jack asked her, receiving a nod in reply. 'Can you tell us anything else? How many are there? Are they armed? What's the set up?' The woman looked at him in confusion, not sure how to respond.

'I'm Kerry,' she said instead, then fell silent, looking warily at the faces watching her.

'Sir, I think we need to get further away,' Sam advised Jack. 'Find out what we can then come back with reinforcements if necessary. Kerry,' Sam turned to the woman, 'How long has it been since you got away?' Guessing it had been a while since she had slept or ate.

'Two nights ago. They made the women work in the kitchens and I found some medicine in one of the cupboards so I added it to the evening meal. Once they were asleep, I got away but they started after me early the next morning. There seemed to be something odd though,' Kerry looked thoughtful, focussing on her memories, seeming to forget where she was or who she was with. 'I hid under a bush a little way from the path, but although they searched to either side of the path, they didn't look very far. They didn't seem able to think for themselves.'

'That was indeed the case when we captured the pursuers.' Teal'c informed Jack. 'They attempted to fight, but they were poorly trained although they were using some rudimentary Jaffa combat techniques and we were able to anticipate their movements.'

'Kerry, is there anything else…' Jack was interrupted by Jonas.

'Colonel, I think we need to get away from here and give Kerry the chance to get some rest and something to eat.' Jonas had picked up on Sam's concerns. 'If she's right, more men will be sent out once those we captured don't return, hopefully that won't be until morning.'

Jack looked at Kerry appraisingly, then responded with 'Ok. Teal'c, you're up front, I'll watch our six. Jonas, you're with Kerry.'

*************

'Hey, Teal'c,' Jack caught up with Teal'c. Teal'c turned to him, raising an eyebrow questioningly. 'I think this is far enough, we should set up camp here,' Jack instructed. He'd been keeping an eye on Kerry and could see she was flagging. She had kept going, placing one foot in front of the other, but it was easy to see that she was running on adrenaline alone and if she didn't stop soon, she would probably fall over.

'Very well.' Teal'c acknowledged the instruction and proceeded to lower his pack to the ground. The others followed his lead and soon all except Jonas were busy setting up camp for the night. Jonas helped Kerry to sit down with her back against a tree before he too removed his pack, took his water bottle out and sat next to Kerry, handing the bottle to her. She took it gratefully and drank deeply before handing it back, wiping the back of her hand over her mouth.

'So…how are you doing?' Jonas asked. 

'I'm ok,' Kerry spoke quietly. 'Just a bit tired.'

'Well, we're stopping here for the night. Teal'c and Major Carter will soon have dinner ready - it might not be anything fancy, but I'm sure you would appreciate a hot meal.' Jonas smiled at her.

Kerry returned the smile, then turned her gaze to where the others were setting up camp, trying to conceal a shiver as she felt the coolness of the evening air now she was no longer active. Jonas was aware at once and stood up to fetch a sleeping bag from his pack.

'How is she?' Jack asked him as he saw what Jonas was doing.

'Tired, cold and hungry but I think she's going to be fine.' Jonas assured the Colonel. 

Jack nodded his understanding, then said 'Keep an eye on her will you. She seems to trust you and I don't want to risk her getting away again - she's our best hope of getting in there and carrying out our mission successfully.' Jack patted Jonas on the shoulder, then turned back to keep an eye on the area surrounding their camp.

Jonas had only been gone for a couple of minutes but by the time he returned, he could see Kerry's tiredness must have been greater than he realised. Once she had stopped, the adrenaline on which she had been running had drained away and now she was asleep, curled up by the tree she'd been leaning against. Jonas rolled her gently into the sleeping bag, removing her shoes as he did so and then left her.


	3. Part three

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Camp Go'auld

Part three

Voices woke Kerry the following morning and for a while she let the sound wash over her, until an eerily familiar voice joined in the discussion causing her to sit upright abruptly, drawing attention to herself. 

'Good morning. How are you feeling?' Jonas greeted her with one of his trademark grins.

Kerry smiled nervously at him, 'Much better, thanks. I…uh…I need to use the bathroom…' 

'Oh, yes, um, I'll just…' Jonas went up to Major Carter and spoke quietly to her.

'Hi,' Sam greeted her. 'I'll need to come with you, I'm afraid.' The two women walked away from the camp. 'Feeling any better this morning?'

'Much better now I've had some sleep. I couldn't believe how tired I was.' Kerry responded, trying to fight down the feeling of rising panic.

'I'll wait here for you,' Sam stopped by a tree, indicating that Kerry should go a little further away behind some bushes.

Kerry moved to where Sam pointed and made use of the make-shift facilities, feeling a lot more comfortable now she didn't have a full bladder distracting her. She'd just finished up when Sam's voice called out from the other side of the bush.

'Everything all right?' Sam asked, figuring the other woman had had enough time and cautious about leaving her on her own for too long.

'Just coming,' Kerry replied as she moved slowly out from behind the bush. She walked beside Sam back to the camp site, her mind working furiously to try to figure out her next move, what she could do to get to safety and alert the authorities that something was going on in these mountains. Sam noticed her withdrawal and tried to start a conversation but was met with silence. 

As they neared the camp, voices drifted towards them. 

'So SG3 reckon they've found a way to get in there, then?' Jack was asking.

'Yes, but I think Selmak may have something to say about what they propose,' Jacob was saying. Sam and Kerry approached the camp just as Jacob's head dipped down then up again and began speaking in Selmak's voice. Sam turned to Kerry to introduce her to her father when she realised she was no longer at her side. 

Yelling to the others, 'She's getting away,' Sam was after her before the rest of her team could get to their feet. Sam could hear Kerry crashing through the trees and bushes a short distance ahead of her and was soon within sight of her, realising that although Kerry was rested now, she hadn't eaten anything for some time and was stumbling over branches and the uneven ground, slowing her down. A few moments later, Sam saw Kerry go down, her foot twisted awkwardly underneath her but even this didn't stop her, she continued running with a slight limp now slowing her further until Sam was able to grab her by the arm bringing her to a stop. 

Kerry wrenched herself free from Sam's hand and backed up against a tree, her eyes looking around at the people closing in on her, preventing her from making another break for freedom.

Jack approached her, waving to the others to stay back but to maintain a close watch on Kerry.

'Care to tell me what that was all about?' Jack said, keeping his voice even and controlled, non-threatening.

Kerry said nothing, her eyes darting behind him then back again, eyes that showed a fear of something. 

After a few minutes of this, Jacob spoke up, Selmak still in control.

'Why do you not let Jonas talk to her?'

As soon as Kerry heard this voice she reacted, making a last attempt to get away from the danger but she was not quick enough, finding herself being held securely by strong arms, her own arms pinned to her side.

Struggling, she spoke fiercely as she tried to free herself. 'He's one of them, you're all in this together. Let me go. I won't go back. You can't make me go back there…'

'Kerry.' Jonas spoke her name firmly, watching as she continued to try to break free, tears streaming down her face. 'Kerry. Listen to me. Kerry, I know how this must look, but this is Jacob Carter, General Jacob Carter, he's Major Carter's father and he's on our side.'

Kerry stopped struggling for the moment, allowing the words that Jonas had spoken to sink in but Jack retained his grip on her, feeling how rigidly she was holding herself and remembering what had happened when he had relaxed his guard with her before.

'He speaks like Sar'ash and his eyes glowed in the same way. He's one of them isn't he? He's got you all working for him. You just want to get me back there so I can't tell anyone what's really going on here.' Kerry snapped back at Jonas.

'Kerry, my father isn't one of them. He is something similar, but there are good guys and bad guys. Sar'ash is one of the bad guys and my father is one of the few people who can capture him, to stop him from carrying on.' Sam came forward to stand with Jonas, but not coming too close, not wanting to threaten her in any way.

'It's true Kerry, look at me.' Jonas spoke in a firm voice, surprising the rest of the group by his tone of voice and the way in which he managed to get Kerry to look at him, the fear gradually fading from her eyes. 'We're with the air force. Sar'ash has managed to get hold of some experimental technology and drugs and is testing them. We need to stop him, and General Carter is the best person for the job. Will you help us?' Jonas's forehead creased as he looked Kerry straight in the eye, challenging her to believe him. 

Jonas's attempt appeared to be working, Jack could feel Kerry relaxing her guard, but he could still feel her shivering, whether from fear, cold or stress, he didn't know.

'Kerry?' Jack asked quietly, confident that she wasn't going to try to get away again.

Kerry nodded to Jack's unspoken question and Jack released her, allowing Jonas to guide her back to the camp with Teal'c keeping a close watch, just in case. 

Jonas could see Kerry's shoulders drooping with weariness, the benefits from the night's sleep used up in her flight from Jacob, and while they were still some distance from camp, he could see her stumbling. Moving closer to her, Jonas took her arm just above the elbow to steer her in the right direction and to steady her. He felt her tense up as she felt his touch, then relaxed when she realised who it was and what he was trying to do.

Before she knew it, Kerry found herself back at the campsite and Jonas was helping her sit down beside the fire that was now burning low. Kerry drew her knees up to her chest, hugging them with her arms while she gazed into the fire, trying to bring her emotions under control. She felt like crying with all she had been through and the fool she had made of herself, but she would not, refused to do that in front of these people. 

A few minutes later, she found a bowl of food in her hands, a mug of coffee placed on the ground beside her. Sniffing at the smells coming from the bowl, she wrinkled her nose up, but her stomach decided that no matter what the food might smell like, it wanted feeding so she slowly ate the contents of the bowl, gratefully accepting a second helping when she had finished the first. By the time the food was gone, Kerry was feeling a lot better and ready to face up to what was coming next.

************

'I teach ancient languages but I'm also a volunteer at a homeless shelter in Great Falls. I'd had to go home in the middle of my shift at the shelter as I realised I'd forgotten to bring in some stuff I'd collected earlier from one of the companies that donate to us.' Kerry spoke nervously, casting wary glances in Jacob's direction, then returning to check with Jonas who sat beside her, providing her with the reassurance she needed that these were good guys and were going to help. 'When I got back, everyone from the shelter, including all the volunteers, were being loaded into a mini bus by some official looking men - they looked like soldiers and were carrying funny looking guns.'

'Look anything like this?' Jack held up his zat gun.

'Yeah, that was them.' Kerry confirmed, then continued. 'Anyway, I went up to ask what was going on and the one in charge said there'd been an outbreak of a highly infectious disease, originating from our shelter, and they had to quarantine everyone connected with the place at a secure location. I thought it was strange as none of them were wearing protective clothing, but they were giving out pills to everyone to take, and the next thing I knew, I was in that place back there.' Kerry paused, trying to recall what had happened after that. 'Everything was hazy for a while, I remember they gave us medication three times a day, but then it began to feel all wrong and I decided not to take the pills any more. My head started to clear and I got a good look at what was going on. The people I arrived with and lots of others were wandering around like zombies. They functioned in the tasks given them, but they seemed to have no life in them. The men were taken off to the open area of the compound and trained in some weird kind of combat techniques using long sticks. The women looked after the place, kept it clean and did all the cooking.'

'How many people are there?' Sam asked.

'There's Sar'ash himself and a couple of heavies who seem to be with him - they've got tattoos on their foreheads and they're even weirder than Sar'ash is. There were thirty men and twenty women when I first arrived, but another busload arrived just after I stopped taking my pills and another twenty-five men arrived. They don't seem to need so many women, just enough to take care of the domestics. The men who've been there the longest seem to have more responsibility for training the newcomers and keeping order. It can get quite brutal in there if you don't do as you're told.' Kerry shuddered as she recalled what it had been like the first few days, trying to conceal her growing awareness of what was going on there and looking for a way to escape.

'Thanks Kerry, that's been a big help. Can you tell us anything about the security inside the compound - we've seen what's on the outside but any other help…' Jack asked.

'There is a constant guard all around the compound, they're changed every three hours except at night when the guards are usually on duty from midnight until six o'clock. They've got more of those funny guns and more normal looking guns, like the one you've got.' Kerry pointed at Jack's P-90.

'Ok, so, any suggestions?' Jack asked, looking for input from the rest of his team.

There was silence for a few moments, broken by Jacob.

'It's obvious we can't go in there in a full frontal attack, there's too much danger of innocent people getting hurt, even though they may be the ones firing on us.' Jacob spoke slowly. 'I think our best hope of getting in there is for Kerry to go back.'

'I'm not going back there,' Kerry jumped up before anyone else could say anything, Jonas stood up with her, laying a restraining hand on her arm to prevent her from taking off again. Jack and Teal'c were on their feet as well, watching what was going on.

'Colonel?' Jonas asked, looking to Jack for reassurance, to help him neutralise the situation.

'No-one's going anywhere unless I have a damn' good reason for it, Jacob.' Jack snapped at the Tok'ra. 'Care to share the rest of this brilliant plan? Remember how much I hate surprises.'

'I'm sorry Kerry,' Jacob apologised, trying to win her confidence. 'That didn't come out right. This is what I've got in mind…'

**********

It had taken Jonas a lot of effort to persuade Kerry to listen to Jacob's proposed plan. As soon as she had heard the beginning of Jacob's idea the colour had drained from Kerry's face, causing all four members of SG1 to prepare to give chase again. Kerry, however, was already beginning to trust SG1 and wanted desperately to rescue all the people she knew from that place, as well as all the other poor unfortunates who had been captured.

'I know that a lot of them are homeless,' Kerry had explained, 'But they're still human, most of them still have their dignity and carry out odd jobs around the place in exchange for what we give them.'

Eventually Jonas had convinced her to consider the plan by saying 'It's your choice, Kerry. We're not going to force you to do this, but you are our best hope of getting in there. If you don't think you can do it, we won't think any the worse of you and we'll make sure you get out safely.'

They had left her to herself for a time, busying themselves with formulating alternative plans and waiting for the arrival of the back up teams who had arrived in Whitefish early that morning and were on their way now to meet up with them. Jonas had sat with her a while, not saying anything unless he was asked, until Kerry stood up abruptly causing all eyes in the camp to spring towards her, wondering what was going on. She slowly walked towards the fire that Jacob was feeding with bits of wood, focussing on the flames.

'Any more coffee?' Kerry asked nervously, holding out her empty mug. Jacob glanced at her, took the mug and refilled it for her, expecting her to move back to her previous seat. Instead, she stayed where she was, sitting back on her heels and watched Jacob as he went back to feeding the fire. 'What makes you so different from Sar'ash?' She had asked at last.

'Sar'ash wants to enslave people, to make them do what he wants them to do. I want to stop him doing that because I believe every one has the right to their own lives, to make their own choices and not be forced to do something through fear or slavery.' Jacob looked at Kerry, hoping his words were sinking in.

Kerry remained still for some time after that, watching the flames dancing as Jacob fed them, trying to figure out whether she really could do this or not. At last she stood up and looked towards Jack.

'I'll do it,' She announced.


	4. Part four

Authors note: Thanks for all the feedback, it makes continuing the story feel more worthwhile so here's the next instalment, hope you enjoy.

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Camp Go'auld

Part four

Jacob roughly shoved a dirty-faced figure to the ground in front of the gate and spoke using Selmak's voice to the men guarding the gate.

'I believe you lost something,' Jacob growled angrily. 'Take me to Sar'ash immediately.'

'He is not to be disturbed at the moment,' one of the guards informed Jacob. 

'Fool!' Jacob hissed as he raised his hand and knocked the guard flat on his back. 'Take me there now or those who stand in my way will be suitably punished.'

Another guard immediately bowed low to Jacob and led him to the building that stood within the walls. Jacob said nothing, tugging absently on Kerry's as he followed the guard. As they entered the building Jacob could feel Kerry resisting slightly as they got closer to Sar'ash's quarters, the only way he could keep her moving and get her to enter the room was by means of a reassuring squeeze to her arm, masked by the otherwise rough way in which she was being treated.

Without knocking, Jacob threw the door open and interrupted Sar'ash in the middle of some very personal time. There were two scantily clad women in attendance, one of whom was kneeling behind him massaging his bare shoulders while he gazed lecherously at the other who was performing an erotic dance and was slowly removing the little clothing she had on. Jacob forced himself to hide his feelings of disgust at the scene in front of him, having no doubt what the outcome of this little gathering would have been, and confident that this would not have been the first time the women would have had to serve Sar'ash in this way. 

'Leave us now!' Jacob ordered, startling the little group.

'What is the meaning of this?' Sar'ash snapped, recognising Jacob as a fellow go'auld.

As soon as the others had left, Jacob spoke again.

'I have been sent to assess the progress being made here and there appears to be little. You have had enough time to prepare this planet for Anubis but I see you did not take our Lord's instructions seriously and prefer to waste your time on these Tau'ri.' Jacob stood nose to nose with Sar'ash, threatening him.

'You do not understand,' Sar'ash replied fawningly. 'These people are suspicious, they will notice if I move too quickly. I have my officers nearly ready to begin the next phase. Soon they will all be under my control and then I will send word to Lord Anubis.' Sar'ash's eyes remained guarded as though trying to conceal something.

Jacob, ignoring this, moved the conversation on.

'We shall see. I find it hard to believe that you will be able to subdue this planet when you can allow a single serving girl to get free.' Jacob roughly pulled Kerry around from where she was kneeling on the floor, her head bowed in submission and fear, as she remembered what had nearly happened to her in this room, what had prompted her to take flight.

'It will not happen again, my lord,' Sar'ash whined. 'Those responsible for allowing her to get away have been suitably punished as will this one.'

'That will not be necessary. That has already been taken care of and I will use her as my personal slave. I believe her punishment will ensure her loyalty to me.' Jacob intended that Kerry should remain as close to him as possible, under his protection. 'These quarters seem suitable. I'm sure I will be comfortable here until Lord Anubis arrives. Now go have your men prepare a demonstration of their readiness to do battle. I shall come down in one hour.' Jacob glared impressively at Sar'ash, who looked as though he would like to argue against being turned out of his own luxurious quarters but backed down and left the room nervously twisting his hands together.

As soon as he was sure they were alone, Jacob turned to Kerry.

'You ok?' Jacob's voice now replaced Selmak's in which he had been speaking throughout the conversation with Sar'ash. Kerry nodded, looking fearfully around the room. 'Were you ever brought to this room?' Jacob asked gently, understanding the terror she was exhibiting.

Kerry nodded again, then spoke in a rush. 'Only once, just before I got away. He seemed to favour the good looking ones so I made myself as unattractive as possible - wearing the baggiest and shabbiest clothes I could find and kept my hair all messy and my face dirty. He never looked at me twice like that. But one day I'd spilt oatmeal all down myself and I had to have a shower. He walked in on me while I was dressing and saw I wasn't as ugly as I'd made myself out to be.' Kerry shuddered as she recalled how vulnerable she had felt at that time then continued. 'He just looked at me in a calculating sort of way and left the room. I thought maybe I'd gotten away with it, but then the next day he sent for me and I knew I had to go. There was another girl who tried to refuse him and she was beaten up so badly it was a week before she could work again and she still limps now. Tonac and Nilas, his guard, told us that next time someone refused to do our master's bidding they would not be so lucky. So I went. I did get lucky though, he…he made me start to undress for him, but then someone sounded the alarm and I was told to return to the kitchens.'

'That was when I knew I had to get away so I put that stuff in the evening meal and waited till they were all asleep. I managed to avoid them for two days, but then I started getting tired and I stumbled across that patrol and only just got away again. If I hadn't run into Colonel O'Neill and the others…'

'I see. Well, while you're my personal slave, no harm should come to you, you're under my protection.' Jacob reassured her, patting her on the arm. 'Ok?' Kerry nodded. 'Well, I've got myself a battle drill to supervise. Lead the way.' 

************

Later that afternoon Kerry made her way to the kitchen. 'My master has ordered a banquet in his honour. He has commanded that I take charge of the preparations. This is what we are going to be doing…'

Kerry, trying to maintain a brave appearance, issued instructions to the women, some to prepare the food, others to make ready the dining area for the feast. Kerry flitted around from one location to the other, checking up on progress being made with the preparations and to ensure it was all being done to a satisfactory standard. In the kitchen she stirred here, tasted there and added extra seasoning and ingredients to the dishes she tried. Unnoticed, she was able to slip an extra something into many of the dishes, leaving only a very few untouched. At last all was ready and Kerry returned to the quarters where Jacob was now waiting for her.

As she entered the room she realised Jacob was not alone and immediately she knelt before him.

'It is done as you commanded, master,' Kerry spoke in a subdued voice, not daring to look at Sar'ash or Jacob. 'The banquet will be ready in one hour. Should I prepare your bath?'

'Do so. Sar'ash, you shall sit beside me at the banquet and all those who serve shall join us in honour of this occasion.' Jacob dismissed Sar'ash and made his way through the archway at the back of the room to the area where a large bath was sunk in the floor.

'Everything went as planned?' Jacob asked Kerry who had turned on the taps in the bath. 

'Yes. I'm sure nobody suspects anything.' Kerry informed Jacob.

'Good work. Now we wait.'

***********

'Something is not right,' Sar'ash growled to his guard just before he entered the banquet hall that evening.. 'Keep a close watch on both of them. If either of them puts a foot wrong - deal with it.' Sar'ash stood behind the seat indicated, waiting for Jacob's arrival. The room was filled with rows of tables, behind which stood the men waiting for the signal to seat themselves to begin the feast.

A few minutes later, Jacob, followed by Kerry with her head bowed respectfully, entered the room. Jacob took his seat, Kerry remaining behind him to ensure he had everything he needed - particularly to make sure he ate only certain items of food.

The feast began, the swell of voices chattering filled the room as the women brought in dish after dish of food. The men helped themselves generously, not used to such rich pickings as this, watched benevolently by Jacob, who was in turn being watched by Tonas, Nilas and Sar'ash himself. Sar'ash helped himself to the same dishes Jacob did, refusing those that Jacob was not eating, suspecting that this newcomer was here to replace him and that the food might be poisoned. Kerry, observing this, was beginning to get edgy, knowing that if Sar'ash and his two guards did not eat the food, then they would still be able to prevent Jacob's plan from working.

As the evening wore on the men finished eating and sat drinking beer and wine. Generous quantities of both were brought out and the women had retired to the kitchens to partake of their own meal, also generously flavoured by Kerry during the afternoon. Midnight approached and Jacob watched with a satisfied smile as silence fell on the room, the last of the men falling into a deep, drug-induced sleep. The only problem remaining now was Sar'ash and the two Jaffa guard. Pondering this, Jacob stood and indicated he was going to retire, Kerry following him. 

As soon as they left the room, Jacob hurried back to his quarters, pulling out his radio as he went.

'Jack?'

'Jacob?' Jack's voice crackled over the radio. 'Are we clear?'

'Almost - everyone is asleep except for Sar'ash and his two boys, which is what we figured might happen. We'll be at the rendezvous point in ten minutes. Jacob out.'

Jacob moved swiftly around the room, placing some objects at regular intervals, items he had picked up earlier in the day on one of his rounds of inspection. Surveying his handiwork, Jacob smiled at Kerry.

'All set - time for us to make tracks.' Jacob said. He moved toward the door and flung it open only to find Tonas and Silac in front of him, pushing him back into the room, closely followed by Sar'ash. Sar'ash glanced around the room, seeing nothing out of place, but turned to Jacob who now had his arms being held by a Jaffa on each side.

'So. You are a traitor in our midst. You are To'kra, not go'auld. For this you will be punished.' Sar'ash snapped as he raised a hand bearing a ribbon device.

'Fool,' Jacob snapped back. 'Lord Anubis is waiting my report at this very moment. You must release me at once and your punishment may be lessened. Persist in this nonsense and you will feel the full force of Anubis's wrath.'

Sar'ash, momentarily taken aback at this response, lowered his hand slightly. Then he resumed his previous stance. 'It is you who are the fool. I heard you sending that message to SG1. You may have overpowered my people, but this act will not go unpunished.' A light shot from Sar'ash's hand, hitting Jacob squarely in the forehead. Kerry watched in terror as Jacob sagged at the knees, kept upright by the men holding on to his arms.


	5. Part five

****

Camp Go'auld

Part five

The designated SG teams were in position around the compound waiting for Jacob to give them the go ahead. Jack's radio crackled into life.

'Jack?' Jack heard Jacob's voice.

'Jacob? Are we clear?' Jack asked.

'Almost - everyone is asleep except for Sar'ash and his two boys, which is what we figured might happen. We'll be at the rendezvous point in ten minutes. Jacob out.' The radio fell silent and Jack wasted no time in issuing his orders. The teams had all been briefed earlier and now they were about to see if Jacob's plan could be pulled off without the loss of innocent lives.

Silently, from three different angles, figures moved towards the fence, raising weapons and firing. Bolts of blue lightning lashed out and hit the guards around the fence causing them to drop soundlessly to the ground. Instantly, more figures ran forward bearing cutting equipment, slicing through the fence and past the fallen men. Members of SG9 remained behind to deal with the guards, giving each an injection before moving them outside the perimeter fence to the coaches waiting to transport them away. 

The rest of the SG teams, following the lead of SG1, entered the building.

Using hand signals, Jack motioned for SG15 to start moving the women out of the kitchen and the other three SG teams were set to get the men from out of the main hall. It would take time, but the medication supplied to them in their food would keep them asleep for some time to come. Any which showed signs of coming to would be dealt with by Dr Fraiser's team of medics who were waiting to transport these people to a nearby disused airfield which had been converted in to a makeshift field hospital.

Jack led his own team to conduct a search of the building to make sure no surprises lurked there. They had come across a couple of people in the hallway, people who had not attended the feast for whatever reason and they were swiftly dealt with, a quick blast from a zat gun followed by an injection took care of them.

'I think we're in the clear,' Jack spoke softly. 'Only this corridor left.'

'What was that?' Jonas hissed in Jack's ear.

Jack turned to look at Jonas whose face was almost in his own. Jonas smiled nervously and backed off a little.

'I think I hear voices up ahead,' Jonas said.

'You sure? I don't hear anything,' Jack queried.

'Jonas Quinn is correct, I too can hear people talking. I believe it is coming from the room at the end of the corridor,' Teal'c confirmed Jonas's assessment.

Jack considered this for a moment, then led the way forward. The eerie silence in the corridor was broken abruptly by a shriek of pain. Running towards the source of the noise, they were thrown backwards by an explosion blowing the door off its hinges. Inside the room they could see figures moving around, but were not able to recognise anyone at first.

As one, they all ran forward again, shielding their faces with hands from the blast of heat emanating from within the room. A figure was running around in distress, its clothing in flames. Someone else could be seen stooping down to haul another person to its feet, wrapping an arm around its companion's shoulders to support it and begin to slowly make their way to the door. Too slowly. 

**************

Jack could feel the heat building up in the room. Jacob had laid charges throughout the room to act as a distraction in the event of anyone escaping the sleeping draught, Jack knew that there had been only one explosion and that in this heat the others would go up soon.

'Get them out of there,' Jack yelled as he sped forwards, Teal'c close on his heels. The two figures were near the open doorway now, the smoke billowing around them concealing their identity. Hoping they weren't about to rescue the enemy, Jack and Teal'c simultaneously reached out for the people trying to escape the flames, exclaiming at the same time:

'Jacob Carter!'

'Kerry!'

'Ok, we've got you now.' Jack said to get Kerry to release her grip from Jacob's shoulders and allow himself and Jonas to take his weight. At the same time Teal'c supported Kerry, while Sam led the way out through the worsening smoke, yelling into her radio as she went.

'Get the rest of those people out now!' Sam shouted. 'This place is about to blow big time.' Wasting no more breath, Sam made sure she was being followed and ran swiftly to the nearest exit, kicking the door open and allowing a brief respite as the cool, clean air swept away the worst of the smoke. Knowing they weren't out of the woods yet, SG1, still supporting Jacob and Kerry, ran to the perimeter fence where they were assisted by the medics waiting their arrival. A few seconds later a series of loud explosions rocked the ground and sent sheets of orange flame into the sky as the remaining explosives detonated. Jack stopped to survey their handiwork before turning his attention to what was going on now.

Jack handed Jacob over to the medics and moved to where Colonel Anderson was directing the rest of the operation.

'Did we get them all out?' Jack asked, swiping his hand down his face to remove the sweat trickling down his nose. 

'Yes - most were out before Major Carter signalled to us, then we went hell for leather and just pulled the rest out anyhow. We're just getting the last of them on to the coach. Two coaches are already on their way, should be nearly there by now.' Anderson's radio crackled.

'The first coach has just rolled up, sir,' Ferretti's voice spoke. 'I can see the second one just behind it.'

'Thanks Ferretti. Keep me posted. Anderson out.'

'Well, it looks like we pulled it off.' Jack grinned at Anderson and returned to where he had left his team.

'You need treatment, Kerry,' Dr Fraiser was arguing with Kerry who didn't want to co-operate.

'I'm fine, just breathed in too much smoke,' Kerry tried to convince the doctor.

'And for that reason we need to check your lungs,' Dr Fraiser was sounding exasperated.

'Problem doctor?' Jack asked innocently, ignoring the glare she threw at him.

'Kerry is refusing medical treatment,' Dr Fraiser informed him, crossing her arms as she did so.

'Jonas?' Jack looked to Jonas who had been able to get Kerry to co-operate until now.

'Don't look at me, I've already tried.' Jonas shrugged.

'Kerry - want to tell me what's going on?' Jack looked at Kerry, raising his eyebrows in a question. For a moment, it looked like Kerry was about to refuse to answer, then she saw something about Jack which made her answer.

'They won't tell me what's going on, what happened to the others. Are they going to be all right? And how's Jacob - he was hurt pretty badly and nobody will tell me anything,' Kerry snapped in frustration.

Jack, trying to hide his surprise at Kerry's asking about Jacob, gave her the answers he knew. 'The rest of the people Sar'ash brainwashed have been moved to a temporary field hospital a few miles away. As far as I'm aware there aren't any injuries. They'll be kept sedated for a few days to allow the drug they've been given to leave their systems then providing there aren't any side effects, they'll all be returned home or to the shelter they were taken from. Ok?'

'What about the ones who have side effects?' Kerry appeared to be somewhat mollified by the answer and seemed to be calmer and more rational although she was now breathing rapidly, her forehead glistening with moisture.

'Those will need a little longer in our care, but they will be alright in the long run.' Dr Fraiser responded to this, anxious to get her hands on this recalcitrant patient who probably had more than just a case of smoke inhalation. 'Now will you let me take a look at you?'

Kerry still refused, speaking up again, more breathless than ever now. 'What about Jacob? Is he going to be alright?'

'I'm going to be fine, Kerry, thanks to you,' Jacob appeared, supported by Sam, looking dirty and tired, but a lot better than when she had helped him out of the fire.

'But…' Kerry looked startled, not understanding how he had recovered so quickly. 

'I've got an unusual metabolism,' Jacob explained. 'I heal pretty quickly and it takes a lot to hurt me seriously. I'll be good as new in a day or two.'

'Good to see you up and about Jacob,' Jack greeted him warmly, seeing the struggle the other man was having with staying on his feet, despite his insistence that he was fine. 'What was that you were saying - about being fine thanks to Kerry?'

Kerry looked at her feet in embarrassment as Jacob spoke up again.

'Kerry stopped Sar'ash from killing me by setting fire to his robes - that's what started the fire. While he was running around the room, he set off one of the explosives I'd planted, catching himself and his two Jaffa. Kerry and I were both knocked out for a moment but she managed to haul me to my feet and got us both of there.' Jacob finished, smiling at Kerry.

'Way to go, girl,' Jack grinned at Kerry.

'I…' Kerry tried to speak but was interrupted by a fit of coughing, accompanied by her clutching her side, her face twisted in pain.

'Give me some space here,' Janet ordered, helping Kerry to sit down, seeing her wince. Carrying out a swift examination, Janet gave her diagnosis. 'Well, you're suffering from smoke inhalation, a mild concussion and you've got a couple of cracked ribs which are going to make you pretty uncomfortable for a while. I'm just going to give you something for the pain.' Kerry felt a prick in her arm, a feeling of coldness seeping into her, then everything began swimming and the pain she'd been feeling receded. The last thing she recalled was hearing Jack's voice saying:

'Another one bites the dust. Don't you just love it when a plan comes together?'


	6. Part six

****

And the story continues…

Camp Go'auld

Part six

Jack stood in the doorway of the temporary medical facility taking in the activity that was going on, his eyes searching for one particular person. He found her at last, surrounded by medics and issuing orders with Jacob Carter standing close by waiting patiently to speak to her. Jack made his way over just as Jacob was able to get Dr Fraiser's attention at last.

'Sorry about that General,' Janet apologised, running her fingers through her hair and taking a deep breath. 'Everything seems to be happening at once. Colonel,' Janet acknowledged Jack's arrival before returning to Jacob. 'How are the injuries?' She took a good look at him, assessing his condition and noting that there seemed to be little wrong with him now.

'I'm fine, thanks,' Jacob smiled sympathetically at her, seeing the tiredness but also the underlying strength which kept her going despite having worked through the night. 'Selmak has done a good job. Now, what were you saying about some of the long term affects on these people?' 

'Perhaps we should take this into my office?' Janet suggested, leading the way into a smaller room away from the bustle and prying ears. They sat themselves down, Jacob and Janet in the two chairs in the room, Jack perching on the edge of the desk. 'For the most part, the drugs weren't taken long enough to have any lasting impact, other than to affect the short term memory. Basically, they won't have any recollection of what took place here which actually works in our favour. Unfortunately, there are a few who were subjected to the drug for longer and their neural pathways have started to degrade in the targeted areas.'

'You mean like those drugs Martin Lloyd was taking to make him forget where he came from?' Jack asked, surprised that he was following the explanation.

'Almost,' Janet smiled at him, trying to keep things simple. 'Their long term memories have been compromised, but so have their cognitive skills and if they aren't treated soon, they will lose the ability to regenerate the damaged areas and could end up needing to be in care for the rest of their lives. There isn't anything I can do for them.'

'The Tok'ra can help,' Jacob spoke up. 'We've come across similar circumstances and we've been able to synthesise something which will reverse the effects, we can also make sure it will keep the short term memory a little hazy to prevent any accidental disclosures.'

'What do you need?' Jack asked.

'I need to return to explain to Anise what is required,' Jacob replied, smiling at Jack's expected reaction.

'Isn't there anyone else?' Jack spoke up. 'Anyone at all? I mean, who knows what we'll end up with if Anise gets her hands on these people.'

'Jack, you have my word that she will provide only what is needed and nothing more. You do trust me don't you?' Jacob raised his eyebrows, questioning.

Jack thought for a moment then sighed deeply. 'I guess so. You're the only Tok'ra I do trust, mind you, so you better not let us down, I'd hate for us to have anything come between us.'

'Ok. I'd better get going. I'll let you know as soon as we've got something.' With that, Jacob was gone.

*********

'So what's all the fuss about?' Jack had been summoned from the medical unit by Sam.

'I thought you might be interested in what we found, sir,' Sam smiled broadly, anticipating Jack's reaction to their find. She stood to one side of the out-building and shone her flashlight in to the interior. Jack took one step forward, then snatched the flashlight out of Sam's hands before walking into the cramped area, whistling loudly.

'Excellent!' Jack exclaimed, 'At least we got something out of this after all. If we can't have Anubis's ship, at least we get his armoury. Good work Major.' Jack wandered around the shelving, picking up a weapon here and there, studying it before putting it back down again. 'Get Major Pearce's team to pack this lot up to ship out to the SGC.'

Jack left the armoury and walked with Sam towards the remains of the house. 'Anything else I should know about?' He asked.

'Not really, sir,' Sam responded. 'We found three bodies, but there's not much left of them. I thought maybe Colonel Simmons might be interested. Want me to bag them up and send them on to him?' Sam grinned mischievously. No-one liked the NID Colonel who seemed determined to dog their every move and had loudly bemoaned the loss of Anubis's ship which had seemed like a gift horse at the time. He hadn't said anything aloud, but the members of SG1 were fairly certain he considered they had crashed the ship on purpose.

Jack looked at the badly burnt bodies then sighed. 'No, I guess we better not. Just make sure they're disposed of appropriately.' 

'Yes sir. I think we should be done in a day or so, then we can hand over to the local authorities to finish up here,' Sam advised Jack before returning to overseeing the clean-up operations.

*********

'Colonel O'Neill?' A young lieutenant came hurrying up to Jack. 'Dr Fraiser just called, she's asked if you can meet her at the hospital as soon as possible.'

Jack acknowledged the message, wondering what could have gone wrong now. He was really starting to feel his age and these last few days had been pretty intense. Tackling off-world missions was so much easier than having to think up some cover story for the locals and maintain a tight lid on the security of this operation. He thought fondly of his couch, a cold beer and a hockey game.

'What's the problem, doc?' Jack asked on his arrival, meeting Dr Fraiser outside Kerry's private room. 'I thought she was doing alright, are there complications?'

'She's recovering well from her physical injuries but she is showing signs of stress,' Dr Fraiser informed Jack, ploughing on before Jack could ask why he had been summoned. 'She's got a lot of concerns about what has happened and is asking questions. I've tried to answer what I can and Jonas has been spending some time with her, but frankly, sir, I think she needs a proper debriefing.'

'I have been a little busy recently, doc,' Jack spoke irritably, feeling a little put out that he had been called away just for this. 'Surely it can wait a few more days?' Dr Fraiser didn't need to say anything further, the look on her face told Jack everything and he sighed before tapping on the door and walking in.

***********

Jonas had arrived a couple of hours earlier. He'd been to see her a few times, but Kerry had a feeling that something very strange was going on when she talked to him.

'You're not from round here are you?' Kerry asked Jonas. 

'How do you mean?' Jonas looked at her quizzically, not understanding what she was getting at.

'Where do you come from?' Kerry changed tack.

'Colorado,' Jonas replied, still looking confused. 'Why?'

'Well, it's just that you don't seem to understand half of what I'm talking about,' Kerry said, jumping in with both feet. 'You make the right noises, but you don't really show any comprehension of what I'm saying. For example - what's your favourite TV show?'

'The weather channel,' Jonas smiled as he responded.

'You're kidding me right?' Kerry stared at him. 'Why?'

'I just find it fascinating how so many different kinds of weather there can be from one side of the world to the other,' Jonas said.

'Ok. Where did you last go on vacation?' Kerry threw another one in.

Jonas had to think a little harder now, he hadn't been many places but his mind fixed on the first place he had visited. 'Nevada.'

'Las Vegas?' Kerry asked for more information.

'No, Nevada,' Jonas said, wondering if she was trying to trick him.

'There - that's exactly what I mean,' Kerry said, not looking particularly pleased at catching him out, in fact she looked even more despondent than ever.

'I'm sorry - I don't understand…' Jonas tried to find out what was going on.

'That's it exactly,' Kerry said, allowing her frustration and fear to overcome her natural reserve. 'You haven't a clue. Yesterday, when I was talking about the Lord of the Rings movies, you'd never heard of them, you've never heard of James Bond or Harry Potter and that's just for starters. And for your information, Las Vegas is in Nevada. What planet are you from for crying out loud?'

Jack walked in at the tail end of this conversation, rolling his eyes as he realised it had probably been a bad idea to let Jonas spend so much time on his own with Kerry.

'Is there a problem?' He asked mildly, ignoring the altercation.

'Yes there is,' Kerry said, sitting more upright now, trying to keep her nerves under control at the arrival of a very formal sounding Colonel O'Neill. 'You shoved me in this place with a guard on the door like I'm a prisoner or something. You mumbled something about a debriefing then you disappear and I'm left not knowing what the hell is going on and feeling like crap after I helped you sort out whatever was going on in those woods.'

'Ah,' Jack said, beginning to understand. 'I know how this must look…'

'No you don't,' Kerry broke in, not letting him finish his sentence. 'You're the one in charge here and are giving all the orders. You know exactly what is going on and in control of it all, how can you possibly know how it looks to me? It just looks like you're scared I might have found out something about some stupid military secret, but you know what? I don't care about what happened. I just want to get out of here and get back home where I don't have some idiot following orders trailing round after me. I do have a life you know, unlike certain people in this room.' Kerry finished up casting a disparaging look at Jonas.

'Fair enough, I guess I deserved that,' Jack said calmly, watching her carefully. Kerry's face was flushed with the effort of making this speech and he could see her breathing faster as her lungs tried to catch up. 'I know it's not going to help you much, but there's been a lot to sort out and make sure it's safe before we hand over to the local people to finish up and there isn't much I can tell you about what's going on.'

'I know - national security,' Kerry sounded resigned to not being told anything else. 'Why the guard though?'

'It's possible you heard something which we need to know about, the guard can make sure if you do remember anything then you've got someone to tell about it,' Jack explained.

'Uh huh,' Kerry said, not sounding entirely convinced but recognising that she wasn't going to get much more information out of him. Dr Fraiser appeared at her side, checking her pulse. 'What?' She snapped, the combination of tiredness, pain and frustration becoming evident.

'Your temperature is up slightly,' Janet informed her, ignoring the display of temper. 'But that's hardly surprising. How are you feeling?'

Kerry considered lying for a moment, then figured it just seemed like too much trouble at the moment and said, 'I've got a headache and I'm tired. My ribs are bothering me as well.'

'Ok, well that will improve in a day or two, in the meantime…' Janet handed her a cup of water and a couple of pills which she took and swallowed obediently. 

'Kerry, I'm really sorry about all this, but the guard does need to stay outside for a while longer. We're nearly finished up there now and we'll be back to go through all this with you in a day or two. Ok?' Jack looked at Kerry who had settled herself back down on her pillows and was looking up at him through half-closed eyes. She nodded briefly in acceptance then closed her eyes, asleep before they left the room.

********

'Jonas, what exactly have you two been talking about?' Jack turned on Jonas the moment they were out of the room.

'Nothing much, Colonel,' Jonas said, trying to ease Jack's obvious anger. 'Kerry's been talking about her interests, I didn't say much at all, but I thought it would help her until you got chance to talk to her yourself. I hadn't realised I'd done anything to arouse suspicion.'

'I think it may be a good idea if…What?' Jack snapped out the last word at the guard who had come towards him.

'Dr Fraiser's needed back at the warehouse, sir,' the SF saluted smartly before resuming his station. 

'Come on, let's get out of here,' Jack led the way to the car to take them back.

'What on earth…' Jack surveyed the scene in the side room where those suffering with the long term effects of the drug had been taken.

Teal'c was struggling with one of the patients who seemed to have acquired super-human strength and looked like he was on the verge of freeing himself from the Jaffa's grip.

'Teal'c?' Jack barked out a request for information.

'It appears the substance he was given is causing him to act irrationally,' Teal'c spoke calmly. 'I am attempting to prevent him from harming himself.'

Jack nodded, then watched as Janet cautiously approached, a needle in her hand. Jack moved to assist in holding the man still long enough for her to give the injection, but before he could reach him, the man began convulsing, the veins in his forehead throbbing. Within thirty seconds he was dead.

'What happened?' Jack demanded an answer.

'Without carrying out an autopsy it's difficult to be sure,' Janet replied, 'But I would say he suffered an aneurysm which then ruptured, probably caused by the drugs he'd been taking. We need to get that treatment from the Tok'ra asap if we don't want the same thing happening to the others.'

'I'll get on to General Hammond straight away,' Jack said, leaving the medics to deal with the aftermath.


	7. Part seven

****

Camp Go'auld

Part seven

It was late evening by the time Kerry woke again, feeling a lot better than she had earlier. Her ribs were still very sore but her head was much clearer and she decided she'd had enough of this place. There was no reason she could see to remain in the hospital and she was a free person after all, but first she had to evade the ever present guard outside her door.

She got out of bed, gathered what she needed from the bedside cabinet and left the room, ignoring the man who was shadowing her. She opened a door at the far end of the corridor and locked it behind her. So far, so good. She put down the bundle she had brought and started running water in to the deep bath tub. Five minutes later, she opened the door a crack and spoke to the guard.

'Excuse me,' Kerry said, trying to look helpless. 'I, uh, I wonder if you'd mind fetching my towel from my room, only I forgot to bring it and I don't really want to leave the water running.' She fluttered her eye lashes at him, not believing that she was really trying this, but it seemed to have the desired effect.

'Sure, ma'am,' the guard replied, smiling pleasantly at her. 'Where is it?' Kerry told him where he could find the towel, then closed and locked the door again. The guard on hearing the door lock, figured that she couldn't get into too much trouble in the bath and headed off down the corridor.

Within seconds the bathroom door opened again and Kerry walked out, fully dressed in the clothes that had been supplied by the air force. The baggy blue jump suit wasn't exactly flattering, but it was non-descript and she needed that right now. She walked confidently towards the elevator, stepped into a car which had just arrived at her level and made her way down to the lobby and through the exit.

Glancing around quickly she could see no sign of any military personnel and hailed a passing cab. Half an hour after leaving the hospital, Kerry had gotten home, changed into something of her own and packed a few things before wheeling her bike out of the garage. She didn't really have anything against the air force, she just hated the way they assumed that she would do what she was told without being given any reason or explanation. If she'd wanted to obey orders she'd have joined one of the services herself, but she enjoyed her freedom too much and her recent experiences had been more than enough excitement for a life time. She just wanted to feel free again, feel the wind against her face, just her and the open road with no plans, seeing where she ended up.

***********

'Damn!' Jack exclaimed as he shut off his cell phone. 'That was the guard at the hospital - Kerry managed to give him the slip. He checked with hospital security before calling it in and the security tapes show her getting into a cab about an hour ago.'

'Do we know where she was going?' Jonas asked, concern in his eyes. 

'Not really, but I guess we better check her house first. Carter, you and Teal'c head over there, see what you can turn up,' Jack ordered as he snapped open his cell phone again. 'Dr Fraiser? O'Neill. Kerry left the hospital an hour ago, I've got Carter and Teal'c trying to trace her, what's her medical condition?' Jack listened for a few minutes, pulling a face as he ended the call.

'Colonel?' Jonas could sense something was not well.

'Dr Fraiser is concerned about what might happen if Kerry puts too much pressure on her ribs,' Jack replied, seeing that Jonas was genuinely worried. Apart from Jacob, Jonas was the only one Kerry had really responded to and Jack knew how seriously the younger man took his responsibilities.

Jonas suddenly recalled something from his chats with Kerry. 'Would riding a motor bike be classed as too much pressure?' Jonas asked. Jack whirled around to face Jonas.

'I would say so,' he snapped. 'What do you know?'

'Kerry liked to talk about her bike, apparently she fixed it up herself and loves to go out for long rides,' Jonas explained. 'It seemed a fairly safe subject to talk about since Major Carter has told me so much about her own bike.'

'Got any details on the bike? Make? Model? License plate?' Jack fired the questions at Jonas, trying to get quick answers from the alien who was providing way more information than was needed and taking a long time to get it out.

'It's a Honda, that's all I know, but the registration documents must be at her house somewhere,' Jonas told him. Jack nodded and quickly dialled Sam's cell phone, waiting impatiently until Teal'c answered.

'Jonas thinks she may have taken off on a motor bike, can you check for the documents at her house. Let me know as soon as anything turns up.' Jack finished the call then stood, tapping the cell phone against his hand, contemplating the next move. 

The next move turned out to be issuing Kerry's licence plate details to local garages and handing over the search to the state police, who were better equipped to carry out an operation of this sort. Sam and Teal'c retuned just as Jack received the awaited call. He listened, making very little comment before thanking the caller for their help.

'Looks like she's headed south,' Jack told them. 'She filled up with gas at a station on the highway going south. The cops are looking out for her.'

'What now?' Jonas asked.

'Now we hand over to the civilian authorities, the area has been cleared and we'll leave a couple of teams here until Dr Fraiser can ship out the rest of the patients. Jacob sent us the drugs he promised and we've only got a few people left.' 

**********

Kerry stretched tiredly as she pulled up at a rest stop on the side of the road. She had been on the road since just after six this morning and it was beginning to get dark. She had stopped a couple of times for a drink and to answer the call of nature, but other than that she had been riding for nearly twelve hours straight. For the last couple of hours it had been harder to concentrate on where she was going, her head was starting to feel fuzzy and every time she breathed in she could feel a sharp stabbing pain. She had no idea where she was so took the opportunity of asking the girl behind the counter.

'A couple of miles north of Boulder,' she was told, the girl giving her concerned glances. 'What can I get you?'

Kerry considered this for a moment. 'Hot chocolate, please, oh and a bowl of soup - it smells good. Where's the rest room?' The room was pointed out and Kerry headed for it to freshen up before doing anything else. She took one look in the mirror and began to understand why the assistant had looked so strangely at her. There were shadows under her eyes and she was as white as a sheet, looking like some extra from a horror movie. This made her laugh to herself, then she instantly regretted it as she began finding it difficult to catch her breath.

Clutching her chest, trying desperately to breathe, she grabbed at the rest room door with her free hand, struggling to pull it open. It seemed like she would never get out of there when the door opened and someone was taking her arm, helping her sit down on a chair.

'Ma'am? Can I do something? Can I call someone for you?'

Breathing became much harder and the room started to spin. The last thing she heard was her helper yelling to someone to dial 911.


	8. Part eight

****

Camp Go'auld

Part eight

'You're not going to believe this,' Jack informed the rest of the team, 'Kerry's been admitted to a hospital in Denver. Dr Warner is on his way there now to see about moving her to the SGC infirmary.'

'How is she?' Dr Fraiser jumped in, aware of the complications that could have arisen.

'She's stable, apparently she collapsed in a diner near Boulder and was taken to Denver with a couple of broken ribs,' Jack advised the others. Janet nodded, relief evident in her face that it didn't sound too serious. 

They had all been getting under Dr Fraiser's feet while she finished discharging her patients. The medication supplied by the Tok'ra to eliminate the long term affects of the drug the victims had been given had worked much to Jack's surprise and there had been no more incidents after the first death. Now, it looked like they could pack up and go home, the rest of the SGC personnel had already been shipped back to base, leaving SG1 and a handful of medics to finalise everything. 

'Do you need any more help here, Doc?' Jack asked, eager to hit the road but wanting to make sure everything was under control first.

'No, we're just going to finish packing up and we'll be leaving sometime tomorrow,' Janet had reassured him, glad when at last he had gone allowing her to get on with her job uninterrupted. 

***********

'Kerry? It's Major Carter - Sam.' Kerry swam towards consciousness. She could hear machines beeping and humming in the background somewhere and she struggled to open her eyes. Major Carter? Why did that sound familiar? And why did she suddenly feel trapped? 'Janet, I think she's waking up.'

A pair of heels clicked their way over to her and she could feel a cool hand on her wrist, taking her pulse, then she felt the same hand on her forehead and another familiar voice speaking.

'Kerry, can you open your eyes for me? Kerry?' Kerry struggled against the compulsion to open her eyes. She felt very uncomfortable and she had a feeling that if she opened her eyes she wouldn't feel any better, that maybe she should just sink back into comfortable unconsciousness. It was not to be however and her eyes opened, blinking blearily at two faces watching her. She looked from one to the other in confusion. 

'It's alright Kerry, you're in hospital. You've got a couple of broken ribs but you're going to be fine, just a little uncomfortable for a few days.' Dr Fraiser explained.

'It's ok Kerry, you're safe,' Sam spoke reassuringly, seeing Kerry's eyes darting nervously around. 'Why don't you get some more sleep.'

Kerry nodded briefly and could feel her eyes sliding shut again, welcoming the darkness that brought forgetfulness with it.

**********

While she was in the infirmary, Kerry received visits from Colonel O'Neill, Jonas and Major Carter - Sam. Sam had explained to her that she had been brought to this military base, what she called the SGC, though didn't explain what it stood for, because of the sensitive information that she may have had access to.

'I know things have been less than ideal for you,' Sam said on seeing how defensive Kerry was, and recalling her poor track record for staying put, Sam was determined to do what she could to make things as easy as possible for all concerned. 'And we are going to try and clear things up for you, can you just be a bit more patient with us?' Kerry warmed to Sam's approach, feeling that she genuinely wanted to help her.

Sam had noticed that Kerry still seemed to trust Jonas instinctively and approached Jack concerning this. 'I think you should encourage Jonas to spend time with Kerry,' Sam said bluntly, referring to the conversation Jack had with Jonas after Kerry took off, suggesting it may not be a good idea for him to spend so much time with her. 'She seems wary around most of the personnel here but if she's able to relate to someone, then I think we should encourage it. We can trust Jonas, sir,' Sam finished, knowing that Jack still wasn't entirely comfortable around their fourth member. 

Jack had agreed and Jonas would sit with Kerry, chatting about anything that came to mind, Kerry doing her best to teach him about the things she was interested in.

'No, that's not quite right. Smeagol is kind of a good guy but his other self, Gollum, wants to kill Frodo and Sam and take the Ring for himself. You really should watch the movies, they do stick pretty closely to the book and besides, it's worth watching just to see Legolas.' Kerry laughed and blushed, not believing that she had come out and said it. She certainly wasn't going to admit that she had a Legolas desktop theme on her home computer.

'I might just do that. Teal'c made me sit through all the Star Wars movies in one sitting, so I guess I could make him watch this.' Jonas smiled at Kerry, enjoying the time he had spent with her, finding he was able to learn about life in the outside world from someone who had time to talk.

'You both like watching movies then?' Kerry asked.

'When we get time, which isn't as often as I'd like, but we always seem to be so busy,' Jonas felt the conversation was getting a little too close to the truth here and changed tack again. 'Sergeant Siler - one of the men who works here - is a real motor bike enthusiast and he went to collect your bike the other day. He's put it in one of the garages here and I'm willing to bet that he's making sure it's kept in good condition.' 

'When do you think they'll let me out of here?' Kerry asked, beginning to look fed up as her mind was brought back to where she was. 'Dr Fraiser says she should be able to release me in a couple of days, but Colonel O'Neill says he needs to talk to me before I can go home.'

'The briefing has been arranged for tomorrow providing you're up to it,' another voice joined in the conversation. Kerry looked up to see Colonel O'Neill coming in. 'How are you doing?' He asked, sensing the barriers going up as soon as he entered the room.

'Much better thanks,' Kerry spoke politely, getting a strong feeling all he really wanted was to find out what she knew and that made her really not want to co-operate, unreasonable though it might be. 'What'll happen at this meeting?'

'My team and myself will be there, along with Dr Fraiser and General Hammond - he's the one in charge of this base,' Jack explained, sensing the hostility coming his way and not knowing how to fix it. 'You'll be asked to tell us what happened back at Whitefish, and there will probably be some questions for you. I know it sounds a bit overwhelming,' Kerry looked at Jack in surprise, as he had just described how she was feeling, 'But it's not as bad as it sounds and if you need to take a break, then we can arrange that.' Kerry nodded at him, relaxing slightly, but not completely. Jack smiled pleasantly at her and took his leave.

***********

The next day Kerry was escorted through a maze of corridors and elevators, eventually arriving at some kind of conference room where she was shown to a seat on one side of a large table. Jonas was beside her, and on his other side was Teal'c. Directly opposite was Sam, with Colonel O'Neill next to her and Dr Fraiser near the top end of the table near a plump balding man who had been introduced as General Hammond. It seemed a rather odd room, Kerry thought to herself as she took a quick look around. 

There was a large picture window taking up the entire side of one wall, but there was some kind of screen covering it. She had been brought in through a door at the back of the room but she could see a staircase in another corner of the room and she could hear a faint buzz of people talking and computers humming away. A guard was stationed at the top of these stairs and Kerry was extremely curious as to what she might see if she were to go down those stairs - whatever they were hiding behind that screen she was willing to bet. She shook herself as she realised General Hammond was speaking.

'Dr Fraiser tells me you're well enough for this, Kerry. Are you ready to begin?' His deep Texan voice was reassuring, and she got the impression that this was a man who got the best from his people by his understanding of them. Kerry nodded, her mouth too dry to speak just yet. She took a sip from the glass in front of her and waited for the General to continue. 'Would you tell us what happened to you, right from the beginning?' 

Kerry went through what she had seen when she had returned to the homeless shelter, about being bussed off to the compound in the woods and the drugs they were all made to take and how she had stopped taking them, feeling that something was wrong about the whole situation and her subsequent escape and encounter with SG1.

'And the rest you pretty much know,' Kerry finished up, feeling uncomfortable at being the focus of attention.

'Thank you,' Hammond spoke up when Kerry stopped talking. 'Now, if you don't mind, we'd like to ask a few questions.' He said it so politely, giving her every opportunity to get out if she wanted, but now she was given the option, she found that maybe if she could get everything off her chest it would all be over and done with and she could get back to normality and nodded her acceptance of this.

'Kerry, you mentioned a couple of men who worked with Sar'ash, the ones with tattoos on their foreheads,' Sam asked the first question. 'Can you tell us any more about them - what they did or anything you might have overheard?'

Kerry thought for a few moments and was about to speak when a siren went off capturing the attention of those present.

'No-one's due back,' Hammond said crisply as he stood up, heading towards the spiral staircase in the corner of the room, closely followed by Janet and SG1. Jack turned back to Jonas who was behind him.

'Jonas, stay with Kerry,' he barked out making Kerry jump at the way he had spoken, before he disappeared from sight.


	9. Part nine

****

Camp Go'auld

Part nine

The scene from the control room was chaotic. No iris code had been received but Lieutenant Simmonds was unable to close the iris. Sam slid into the seat beside him, her hands moving so swiftly over the keyboard that they seemed to blur as she tried to resolve the problem.

'Something's jamming it sir,' Sam turned to Hammond and Jack standing behind her. 'I'm going to have to reboot the whole system and that will take a couple of minutes.' Sam returned to her station to complete the required actions.

'All units report to the 'gate room,' Hammond's voice came over the intercom, reverberating throughout the base, 'This is not a drill. Repeat, all units to the 'gate room.' A brief pause then he spoke again. 'Medical teams stand-by.'

'Major, how much longer?' Jack returned to Sam's progress.

'Another two minutes,' she replied calmly, remaining focussed on her task.

'Major, without the computer system we can't initiate the self destruct,' Jack reminded her, no indication of panic in his voice.

'I'm aware of that sir, I'm working as fast as I can.'

Jack said nothing, his attention drawn to the 'gate room where several Jaffa had just come through the 'gate and were aiming their staff weapons in front of them, charging and firing them simultaneously. The first blasts cracked the glass of the control room, while a second volley seemed to be aimed directly above them and they could hear the sound of the metal blast screen shielding the briefing room buckling under the heat and pressure. More Jaffa came through, this time bearing one of their cannons and aimed at the briefing room, the sound of metal screaming as it was torn through like paper could be heard clearly, accompanied by muffled cries.

Sam glanced up for only the briefest moment before she resumed working more frantically and finally was able to slam her hand down on the palm-reader to close the iris. For a moment it looked as though nothing was going to happen, then it began to close slowly, but not before more Jaffa came through. At last the iris was closed to the accompanying sounds of thuds until the gate shut down.

Sam dived for cover, peering into the 'gate room to see what was taking place. Eight Jaffa had come through and appeared to be winning. Many of the guards were injured, those who remained in one piece seemed to be fighting a losing battle as they retreated through the door. Then the additional personnel summoned by Hammond arrived and were more prepared, bearing sturdier weapons, they began to drive the Jaffa back towards the 'gate which Sam had managed to get open between blasts from staff weapons. 

Only three of the Jaffa remained upright now, but they seemed to gain new strength as they began to go on the offensive again, pushing the humans towards the door. Just as it seemed as though they would break through, a tall figure appeared bearing a staff weapon.

'Duck!' He called, his voice full of authority. The soldiers immediately did as instructed and could feel the scorch of a staff weapon searing over their heads and into the approaching Jaffa. Two more fell under the ferocious onslaught leaving one remaining enemy to tackle, one enemy who was almost nose to nose with Teal'c now, giving him no opportunity to retaliate. The whine of a zat gun charging could be heard and a bolt of blue energy flew into the Jaffa, narrowly missing Teal'c. The Jaffa staggered but managed to remain upright, continuing forward. The zat gun fired again and this time, the Jaffa slumped forward on top of his companions.

'Duck, Teal'c?' Jack questioned as he powered down the zat gun, but still holding it in readiness.

'I have heard you use the word many times, O'Neill,' Teal'c replied, unperturbed. 'It is not an order Jaffa would understand, and as you see, it worked.' He looked a little smug at this statement.

'Yes,' Jack looked sideways at Teal'c, then moved to one side to allow the medical teams access to the wounded. As he did so his eyes fell on Kerry, standing unnoticed at the back of the control room and watching everything that was going on, her eyes flickering from the open 'gate to the bodies littering the 'gate room and the doorway. 'Kerry!' Jack spoke more sharply than intended, surprised at seeing her there. 'Where's Jonas?' Jack was cursing Jonas under his breath for not keeping Kerry out of the way.

Kerry stared through him, not hearing his words. 'Kerry?' Jack took her by the arm, shaking her gently to get her attention. 'Where's Jonas?'

'He needs help. When the window exploded he got hurt.' Kerry explained, her voice emotionless.

'What about the guards who were with you?' Jack demanded, angry that someone had slipped up big time. 

'They got hurt too.' There was an oddly blank look in Kerry's face, her eyes shuttered. Jack grabbed a couple of medics and took Kerry back up to the briefing room, pausing at the top of the stairs when he saw the scene before him.

Jonas was lying on his side behind the table, the two SF's who had been on duty were both lying immediately below the window. One glance was enough to tell Jack that the other two men were dead, that there was never any chance of helping them. Jack quickly moved towards Jonas where the medics were checking him over.

'He's alive, sir,' one of the medics reported to Jack. 'His pulse is thready and his breathing erratic but he's been put in the recovery position. He has a chest wound and a cut on his head but I think he's going to be fine.' 

Jack allowed himself to be shunted to one side while they prepared to transfer Jonas to the infirmary, Jack's attention returning to Kerry who was still standing listlessly where he'd left her. He sighed to himself as he realised he was probably the only one available to deal with her at the moment: Carter was tied up checking out the 'gate computers, Jonas was too badly injured and Dr Fraiser was going to be occupied with a full infirmary for the foreseeable future. This wasn't quite what he joined the air force for, but years of working alongside Daniel Jackson had brought out the more compassionate side of him and he knew he had to do something.

'So,' Jack said casually as he approached her, 'Want to get out of here?' He got a reaction this time as she nodded fiercely, her gaze falling on the dead men in the room. 'Ok. Let's grab some coffee then.' Before they could leave, General Hammond appeared from the lower level, his eyes falling on Jack and Kerry.

'Colonel?' 

'Jonas was injured and has been taken to the infirmary. You'll need to get someone clear up here, sir,' Jack tilted his head in the direction of the window and the two men still there. 'I've got a few things to take care of.' Hammond nodded his dismissal and Jack steered Kerry out of the room.

Ten minutes later they were sitting in the mess hall, mugs of hot chocolate in front of them. Kerry was silent, gazing at the steam rising from her chocolate, her eyes unfocussed. Jack sat watching her, recognising the signs of shock, knowing that the sooner she talked about it the easier it would be for her. After a few more minutes, Jack touched her arm, pointing at her drink and making a drinking signal using his own mug.

'You know, this stuff is called hot chocolate for a reason,' Jack said lightly. 'It's supposed to be drunk when it's hot.' He was rewarded with a small smile and Kerry obediently drank up, cradling the empty mug in her hands as though seeking out some extra warmth, Jack reached out to feel her hands, eliciting a surprised look from Kerry who was now beginning to come back down to earth. 'Here,' Jack took off his jacket and put it round her shoulders, making Kerry realise how cold she was.

'So.' Jack said. 'Want to tell me what happened?' 

'A couple of blasts hit the window, Jonas made me get on the floor behind the table,' Kerry spoke numbly. 'Then some bigger blasts came through. The two guards were on their way down the staircase and Jonas was looking to see what was happening. Jonas got hit in the chest and he knocked his head on the corner of the table. The guards were right next to the window. They didn't stand a chance. I tried to see if I could help them but they were…they were…' Kerry's voice trailed off for a moment before she spoke again. 'Jonas was still alive and I heard General Hammond call for the medical teams. I thought I could get him some help. He didn't seem very well and I was afraid he'd…I thought he might…' Kerry came to a halt.

Jack waited for her to continue but she remained silent, he'd expected some kind of outburst and he was getting worried. 'Want some more hot chocolate?' 

'No. I…' It looked like the icy exterior was about to crumble, but Jack could see Kerry pull herself together and she fell silent again, shivering in spite of the jacket she was wearing, stifling a yawn.

'You look like you could use some sleep,' Jack said, suddenly noticing how tired she was looking, recalling that she was still recovering from her own injuries. 'I'll show you to one of the VIP rooms.' 

They made their way through the busy corridors until they reached their destination. Jack opened the door and showed Kerry into the room, making sure she had everything she needed before turning to leave. He was nearly out of the door when a sound brought him back, the sound of a stifled sob.

'Kerry?' Jack kept his distance, feeling awkward. Kerry looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears which were spilling down and working their way down her face. She dashed her hand across her face, wiping the tears away.

'I'm alright,' she hiccupped, trying to sound normal. 'I'm just tired, I'll be fine after I've had some sleep.' She turned away from him, her shaking shoulders belying the words she had spoken. Jack moved towards her instinctively and caught her in a hug, one hand rubbing her back while the other held her head securely against his shoulder. He could feel her tenseness evaporate as she dissolved into tears, sobbing away the shock. 

After a few minutes he could feel her pulling away.

'You ok?' He asked gently, relieved when she nodded in response. 'I'll let you get some sleep. There'll be someone outside the door in case you need anything. You sure you're alright?' Jack could see that she felt embarrassed by what had happened but wanted to be certain she really would be alright on her own and was satisfied when he received another nod and a small smile. 'Ok, well, I'll say good night then.'


	10. Part ten

****

Camp Go'auld

Part ten

Jack peered cautiously around the door of Kerry's VIP room the following morning to check up on her. He'd received no answer to his knocks and he was wary of walking in on her if she were dressing or something. His worries were unfounded however as he immediately saw her curled up in the middle of the double bed hugging a pillow and fast asleep. As he left the room he spoke to the guard on duty, asking to be informed the moment she woke up. 

He'd been up half the night clearing up the base and discussing what to do about Kerry with the General and Carter. 

'She was already aware of some of this before we even got here, this incident just serves to provide her with a few more pieces of the puzzle,' Sam had said. 'She's not stupid sir, we've got to come up with something to explain what happened.'

Jack stared at his feet for a few minutes, apparently oblivious to the discussion taking place between Hammond and Sam. He looked up at last to questioning looks from the two of them.

'We tell her everything,' Jack said abruptly, shoving his hands into his pockets.

'We what?' Hammond snapped.

'Sir?' Sam asked in confusion.

'She saw the 'gate in use, she saw the Jaffa and the weapons they have, she was aware of what was going on in Whitefish,' Jack explained. 'You said it yourself Carter, she's going to put two and two together and make five if we try to come up with some cover story. It'll be far less dangerous if we just tell her what goes on here.'

'Agreed,' Hammond had eventually said after a lengthy discussion.

Several hours later Jack was enjoying a well-earned break in the mess hall with Sam and Teal'c when Jack received a message to report to the infirmary.

'For crying out loud, can't this place run without me for half an hour,' Jack grumbled as he got to his feet and took his leave of the others, ignoring the smiles both were trying to conceal.

On his arrival, Jack was greeted by the SF assigned to Kerry.

'What the hell is going on here?' Jack demanded angrily, not believing that someone had slipped up again.

'I'm sorry sir, but…' The airman hesitated, adding to Jack's growing ire.

'But what airman?' Jack snapped.

'Miss Walters wanted to see how Jonas Quinn was, I asked her to wait as you wanted to see her but…' He swallowed uncomfortably and then continued. 'But she said if I didn't take her then she would find her own way, then she kind of pushed past me and headed off down the corridor. I figured it would be best to bring her here then let you know. I'm sorry, sir, but I just couldn't stop her without using force.'

Jack studied the man for a few moments then sighed and relaxed slightly. 'Very well, good work. Dismissed.' The SF, glad to be released made his escape quickly before the Colonel could say anything else. 

As he headed to the far end of the infirmary, he was joined by Dr Fraiser.

'Doesn't she remind you of someone else we used to know?' Jack grumbled to her.

'Sir?' Janet asked, not understanding what he was getting at.

'Daniel was never where he was supposed to be either, chasing after some artefact or rescuing a damsel in distress,' Jack said, his eyes showing how much he missed their absent friend. 'It has to be something about academics that causes it, like they've got an extra gene or something that makes them ignore everything else that's going on.'

'Yes sir,' Janet smiled. 'You might want to observe for a few moments first,' Janet said, a twinkle in her eye as she led him to a curtained area at the bottom of the infirmary.

They stood outside and listened.

**************

'I never said thanks for saving my life,' Jonas was saying.

'I didn't really do anything,' Kerry said, shying away from this unexpected comment.

'Yes, you did,' Jonas replied. 'Dr Fraiser told me that if you hadn't stopped the bleeding and put me in the recovery position I'd probably be dead now and I really appreciate what you did.'

There was silence for a few moments, the listeners could almost feel the tension in the cubicle until Jonas spoke again.

'How are you doing?' Jonas asked, his voice gentle yet firm, demanding a truthful answer.

'I'm…' Kerry was interrupted by Jonas.

'Don't tell me you're fine, because I can see you're not. I'm pretty good at reading people and right now I can see that something is bothering you.' Jonas fell silent, allowing the silence to continue for a few moments until Kerry began speaking in a low voice.

'I saw some…things yesterday and I guess everything that's happened recently just kind of got to me,' Kerry said, hoping that this would be sufficient for Jonas, knowing deep down that he wouldn't settle for that. She was right, as he said nothing, waiting for her to continue. Taking a deep breath, she carried on. 'I saw those guards get killed and there was nothing I could do to help them, but then you got hurt as well and there was something I could do about that and it helped to push that image out of the way, helped me to get on with things. And then when I went to get someone, I saw…I saw…' Kerry stopped, her eyes growing distant as she tried to make sense of what she had seen in the control room.

'What did you see?' Jonas had his suspicions but kept reluctantly quiet, knowing he could not provide any form of explanation.

'There was a big circle in the next room and it looked like there was a puddle of water in the middle of it, but that would be impossible because it was standing upright and if it were water it wouldn't have stayed there. There were men wearing some kind of armour and they had strange weapons that fired bolts of energy. There was a lot of fighting and men getting hurt and the guys in armour were being pushed into the puddle and they disappeared, it was all a bit of a muddle really, then it was all over and a lot of soldiers looked like they were in bad shape. That's when Colonel O'Neill saw me and got a couple of medics to see to you.' 

Kerry stopped talking, staring down at her hands which were twisting a glass. Jonas reached out and placed the glass on the cabinet, afraid it would break if she carried on playing with it.

'So how are you feeling?' Jonas asked, his eyes looking directly at Kerry, demanding she look at him. Kerry responded, looking into his face.

'Confused, tired.' Kerry stumbled over her words. 'Angry, upset. I mean, I've been brought here and no-one is telling me anything about why I'm here or when I can go. It almost seems like a bad dream, but then, my ribs are still sore, reminding me this is really happening and I don't know why. What the hell is going on Jonas?' Kerry's voice was gradually getting louder as she brought all her frustrations and emotions out into the open, looking straight at Jonas, for some kind of answer.

'I'm really sorry,' Jonas sounded uncomfortable. 'I can't tell you anything, but…'

'It's alright Jonas,' Jack stepped into the cubicle, saving Jonas from having to provide an unsatisfactory answer. 'You're looking a lot better than you did yesterday,' Jack said to Jonas before turning to Kerry. 'I overheard what you just said, Kerry.' Kerry looked down at her hands, not sure what to say or do. 'And you will get answers to your questions, but not just yet. Will you trust me on this?' Jack looked at Kerry, waiting for a response.

Kerry turned to Jonas, trying to read his expression, finally accepting Jonas's smile and nod as an indication that she should trust him. Turning to Jack, she nodded slowly, uncertainty still showing in her eyes.

'Thank you,' Jack's voice was quiet, not the authoritative tone he had used before and Kerry found herself warming to him. 'In that case…'

'Colonel,' Janet appeared at Jack's side, 'Jonas needs to get some rest now, and so does Kerry. I suggest you take Kerry back to her quarters after I check her over. Kerry, please come with me.' Kerry stood up and started to follow Dr Fraiser, unable to stop herself from obeying her, catching a glimpse of Jonas and Jack both rolling their eyes at the way Dr Fraiser had them all following her orders. Kerry gave them a quick smile, then left them alone.

***********

It was late the following morning when Kerry was once more shown in to the briefing room. She took a good look around and was surprised to see no indication of what had taken place there the day before: the glass had been replaced but there was no screen covering the window this time. She glanced at the floor where she had watched the two airmen die the previous day and shuddered. Sam hastily showed her to her seat, placing her with her back facing the window.

'Thank you for coming Kerry,' General Hammond began. 'I'm sorry about what you went through yesterday, are you sure you're feeling up to this?' Kerry nodded, her throat very dry making it difficult to say anything. 'Very well, Colonel, I'll hand over to you to explain what we do here.'

'Kerry,' Jack began, 'I guess you've probably noticed that there's something a little odd around here?' Kerry nodded.

'You saw that circle in the room downstairs and those men disappearing through it?' Jack didn't wait for a response this time. 'The circle is what we call a Stargate and when you input a series of symbols, it connects to other planets. The teams we have based here are part of what we call the SGC, Stargate Command, and they regularly go through to other planets to explore and to make allies who can help us out. Those men you saw yesterday were aliens, like the ones back at that compound where we found you.'

Kerry looked stunned and disbelieving, but the faces around the table gave no indication that this was a joke. She considered what she had been told for a few minutes, the room silent, waiting for Kerry to make the next move. Eventually she looked up at Jonas.

'You're an alien too?' She asked, beginning to believe what was going on, Jonas's odd mannerisms and lack of understanding making sense now. 'Is that why you recovered so quickly?' Kerry had been surprised to see Jonas at the briefing with only a little stiffness and a dressing on his forehead to show he had ever been injured. Jonas nodded, and looked at Teal'c, who pulled his hat off. Kerry gasped and jumped to her feet as she recognised that he belonged to the same group of people who had attacked yesterday and had been at the compound. Sam laid a restraining hand on her arm.

'It's ok,' Sam reassured her. 'Teal'c,' she searched for a word that would explain the situation simply, 'Defected and he works with us now - one of the good guys.' Kerry sat down again slowly, keeping a wary eye on Teal'c as though expecting him to start shooting at any time.

'So what's the deal here?' Kerry asked uncertainly.

'This is one of the best kept secrets in the world,' General Hammond said. 'Only the president and a select few members of the government are aware of what goes on here. When the 'gate was first opened, we managed to make ourselves an enemy of a parasitical race that dominate out there - the goa'uld. They are very powerful and seek to control everyone they find, they destroy anyone that stands in their way.' 

'The goa'uld are determined to take earth out of the equation,' Sam took up the explanation. 'Closing the gate down isn't an option as they have ships which can reach us and we use the 'gate to make new allies and try to find ways in which we can defend ourselves.'

'Why are you telling me this?' Kerry looked doubtful. 'I mean, if this is all so top-secret, why tell me what's going on? Are you going to shoot me afterwards or something?'

'No, I don't think it'll come to that,' said Jack, a grin on his face. 

'Kerry,' Jonas spoke up. 'We think that you may have some information that could help us. Without knowing what this is all about, you may not have understood the importance of what you know.' 

'Who's Anubis?' Kerry asked abruptly, then explained further on seeing the expressions on the faces in front of her. 'Jacob said something about him and Sar'ash kept referring to him. I thought it was a code name or something, but maybe he's one of those Gold things. Is that what Jacob meant when he said there were good guys and bad guys? He's a Gold too isn't he?'

'Kind of,' Sam explained. 'The goa'uld look a bit like snakes and they take humans as hosts by wrapping themselves around the spinal cord, Jacob - my father - is a Tok'ra. Basically he carries a symbiote similar to the goa'uld, but the Tok'ra-host relationship is a true symbiotic relationship and they both survive. The goa'uld suppresses the host's personality and rules by fear.' Kerry nodded her understanding. 

'The Tok'ra are our allies,' Sam continued, ignoring the snort that came from Jack.

Kerry abruptly got to her feet and strode over to the window overlooking the 'gate room. She studied the 'gate for a while, oblivious to Jonas who had moved to stand beside her. Eventually she turned away, leaning with her back against the window, still deep in thought before she began muttering to herself. 'It doesn't quite fit,' she was saying. 'It's pretty close though.' Abruptly turning to Jonas she fired out a question.

'Those symbols? The ones on the Stargate? You have to have six of those in order to dial somewhere don't you?'

'Well you actually need to dial seven symbols, but the seventh is always the point of origin. The first six symbols do provide the destination,' Sam answered. Kerry turned to her.

'They're constellations aren't they?' 

Sam nodded, deciding to allow Kerry's thoughts to continue as it looked as though she were going somewhere with this, throwing a warning glance at Jack who was about to demand an explanation.

'Sar'ash had a tablet with six symbols engraved on it, but they didn't look like that, they looked almost Egyptian but not quite the same.' Kerry carried on speaking, her face bearing a far away expression. 'I went to his rooms once to take him some refreshments and he was talking to his guards, he was saying something about Anubis having personally selected him to prepare the assault on the tower 'gate from the outside while Anubis used his new weapon to attack through the gate itself. He said the symbols on his tablet were the planet from which Anubis would begin his attack.' Kerry stopped speaking and looked at the faces watching her, becoming aware once more of where she was.

'The Tau'ri are what the goa'uld call people from earth,' Jonas said, picking up Kerry's misuse of the word.

'Any idea what this weapon is supposed to do?' Jack asked.

'They said something about deactivating the tower's 'gate defences,' Kerry looked doubtfully around her, not sure if what she said had made any sense.

'He's got something that can get through the iris,' Sam said, 'Or stop the iris from closing - it seemed like it was being over-ridden yesterday. Can you remember the symbols?' 

Kerry nodded, allowing Jonas to show her back to her seat and began scribbling on the paper put in front of her, pushing it towards Sam when she was done.

Sam studied the paper for a moment, then turned to Jonas. 'I'm going to need your help Jonas. I can't make out what these symbols are.'

'Let me see.' Jonas took the paper and studied it before continuing. 'I'll need to cross-reference with some of Dr Jackson's notes, but I don't think it'll take too long.'

'Very well,' General Hammond spoke up now. 'Let us know as soon as you've got anything. Dismissed.' Sam and Jack stood as Hammond left the room leaving SG1and Kerry alone. Jonas moved to leave, the paper in his hand. 

'I think I may be able to help,' Kerry said quietly, standing up.

'Colonel?' Jonas asked Jack for permission, who considered the request for a moment before nodding.


	11. Part eleven

****

Camp Go'auld

Part eleven

Jack entered Daniel's, no Jonas's lab, and listened to the discussion taking place. Jonas and Kerry were talking as fast as they could, oblivious to Jack's presence.

'I think you're wrong,' Kerry was saying. 'We're both agreed that this represents canis minor, therefore this symbol must be triangulum. Look at the similarities between them here and here.' Kerry pointed at something in front of them and Jack could see Jonas's forehead creasing in concentration.

'You're right,' Jonas said, grinning at her, his smile lighting up his whole face. 'I can't believe I didn't see it before. I was sure it was orion. How come you know so much about all this?'

'I don't really,' Kerry shrugged her shoulders. 'I've just been studying ancient languages since I was a kid and when you've known something that long it tends to stick, even though these symbols aren't quite the same as anything I've seen before, there are enough similarities to form a hypothesis. You've only been working with all this for a few months but we'd never have got started without what you already knew.'

'Right,' Jonas said. 'Ok. We're halfway there, but it shouldn't take us too much longer. Now, where did I put…'

'How's it going kids?' Jack asked, breaking in on the working party, his hands shoved in his pockets, amused at the startled looks he received.

'Colonel O'Neill,' Jonas greeted him while Kerry remained quiet. 'We've translated three of the symbols but now we understand where they derive from we should be finished in another hour or so.'

'Good, good,' Jack said. 'Have you two taken a break at all since you got here?' Jack's eyebrows arched in a question, pretty certain what the answer would be.

'No,' Jonas said looking sheepish, as he remembered Jack calling something after them as they'd left the briefing room.

'I suppose you'd also forgotten that you're both recovering from injuries and unless you want to end up back in the infirmary I'm ordering the both of you to the mess hall for a half hour break during which I want you to have something to eat and drink. Is that understood?' Jack said, a smile playing around the corners of his mouth as he got a reaction from Kerry.

'I'm not in the military, Colonel,' Kerry protested, not wanting to let him boss her around.

Jack rolled his eyes. 'Jonas told you about Daniel Jackson didn't he?' Kerry nodded. 'Ok, well I think it's time you heard some more about him. Over coffee.'

***********

Two hours later Jonas and Kerry headed for the control room where the others were waiting for them. They had worked much better after the break, during which Jack had regaled them with tales of Daniel Jackson's attempts at bringing unity to the universe and his constant reminders that he was not in the military, therefore he was not obliged to follow orders. 

'We've got it,' Jonas waved the paper he was holding before passing it to Sergeant Davis at the 'gate dialling computer. A MALP was already at the foot of the ramp waiting to go through to the planet as soon as it was dialled. 

Kerry watched in fascination as the chevrons locked one at a time until a wall of water whooshed out from the 'gate before settling back into the ring.

'Amazing isn't it?' Sam spoke softly to Kerry, watching her reaction. 'It never ceases to amaze me that what you're actually looking at is an event horizon of a wormhole…'

'Very big worms,' Jack joined in. 'Carter…'

'Ok, I guess you don't want to hear the full explanation, but isn't it fascinating.' She received no response but could see the wonder and awe in Kerry's eyes, knowing she was as affected as the rest of them at this sight. At that moment the telemetry from the MALP started coming through.

************

SG1 were waiting for the 'gate to finish dialling up. With them were SG3, 9 and 15, all briefed and ready for the, hopefully, short sharp attack they had planned for Anubis's soldiers. The MALP pictures had shown only a couple of guards on the 'gate and a number of ships in the distance. Their mission was to go in, take out the ships, decimate the troops and remove or destroy the device Anubis had acquired which would prevent the iris from closing. 

'Piece of cake,' Jack had smiled humourlessly at the others during the briefing, knowing full well that they would need to be very lucky to pull this one off. Still, with the added bonus of the weapons they had acquired from Sar'ash's armoury they were in a better position to succeed.

Jonas stood in the briefing room with Kerry watching what was going on, Jonas, in spite of his rapid healing, was not fit enough to be joining his team on this mission. As they watched the 'gate opened and settled back down and the MALP again proceeded through, this time carrying a couple of stun grenades which would take out the Jaffa guarding the 'gate at the other end. Jonas could almost see Jack counting down under his breath, then he watched as the four teams made their way up the ramp and disappeared from view.

'General Hammond has given them four hours before they need to report back,' Jonas explained, 'Some of the other teams are standing by in case they're needed. All we can do now is wait.' He smiled at Kerry, a rueful smile which told her how hard he was finding it having to be left behind, feeling he ought to be with his team-mates.

'It'll be fine, Jonas,' Kerry said, putting a hand on his arm reassuringly. 'You'll see. You've told me all about Colonel O'Neill's luck and how he always comes home. Besides, I could do with some company - want to get something to eat?'

Jonas accepted the offer and they headed for the mess hall to drown their sorrows in coffee and chocolate cake.

*************

Jack quickly assessed the situation the moment he stepped through the 'gate: the Jaffa guarding the 'gate had already been taken care of, their bodies lying where they had fallen. The other teams had taken up defensive positions ready for the order to be given.

'Ok,' Jack spoke loudly enough to be heard by all. 'This is what we're gonna do. Williams and Johnson I want you to join SG3 and 9 and take out the ships - you know what to do. Brown and Lewis you're with me, we're going for the weapon.' 

Half-way between the ships and the 'gate they could see a heavily guarded site which was emitting some interesting energy readings. It was this location which SG1 planned on hitting, their primary target.

'Major Castleman I want you to signal us just before you begin your attack, we need to keep our own targets occupied and not give them chance to back each other up. Any questions?' Jack looked around appraisingly, ensuring that there was no doubt about what needed to be done. 'Let's do it then,' he concluded when no one spoke up.

'Sir, there's some kind of shield surrounding the weapon,' Sam whispered in Jack's ear, her eyes studying the technology just out of reach.

'That was to be expected,' Jack looked around trying to formulate a plan of attack. 'Teal'c - any idea how we can take the shield out?'

'None,' Teal'c replied. 'When we destroyed Anubis's first weapon it too was surrounded by a shield. Rya'c destroyed it by flying a glider over it and firing from above.'

'Well, that's not going to work here,' Jack said sarcastically, continuing to think hard. 'Ok, I guess our best bet is to wait for Major Castleman's attack to begin and take advantage of the situation.'

'Colonel, couldn't we make use of the armour of those dead Jaffa?' Lieutenant Lewis offered up, somewhat intimidated at working with the legendary Colonel O'Neill and SG1. 'You know, kind of like a Trojan horse or something?'

Jack stared at Lewis for a moment making the other man feel like crawling into the nearest hole when Jack smiled broadly and clapped him on the shoulder. 'Excellent thinking, Lieutenant. Let me see…' He took a look a the people around him and made his decision. 'Teal'c, I want you and Lewis to dress up and play Jaffa - you're the most likely to pass for the genuine article.'

'I am a Jaffa O'Neill,' Teal'c raised an eyebrow. 'I do not believe now is an appropriate time to be playing games.'

'For crying out loud, Teal'c you know exactly what I mean,' Jack said in an exasperated voice. 'Just go with Lewis and get that armour.' Teal'c acknowledged the order and the two men moved swiftly off.

***********

A massive explosion ripped through the area signalling the start of the assault. Jack, watching the weapon they were to sabotage from a safe distance, saw Teal'c and Lewis running towards the force field. While Teal'c appeared perfectly at home in his newly acquired armour, Lewis looked uncomfortable and Jack hoped he wouldn't let them all down.

'We are under attack,' Teal'c called to the other Jaffa as soon as they were close enough to be heard. An unnecessary statement as they were all looking towards the location of the ships where they could see flames and black smoke billowing into the sky. 'You must send reinforcements immediately.' 

The Jaffa in command hesitated momentarily, then turned to shout orders to his men and soon ten Jaffa headed away from the weapon towards the ships, leaving himself and two Jaffa behind. These now started prowling around the perimeter of the force field, eyes peeled for any indication of trouble, sensing that something was going on.

Jack, listening out for his signal, heard the muffled sound of energy weapons and a few minutes later Teal'c and Lewis returned, Lewis leaning heavily on Teal'c for support. Jack cursed under his breath then continued watching, waiting for the right time to move. Teal'c and Lewis entered the force field, held a brief conversation with the lead Jaffa, then all hell let loose. The Jaffa turned on Lewis, shouted something at him and when he received no response, dragged the helmet off him and within moments three staff weapons were pointed at the two intruders. 

'Ok folks, I guess this is our cue - let's see to it.' He raced towards the force field, stun grenade at the ready and tossed it towards the group by the weapon, silently apologising to Teal'c and Lewis for knocking them out along with the bad guys. Carter and Brown, ducking down behind a rock to avoid the impact of the blast, emerged to follow Jack towards the weapon, securing the Jaffa with ties from their packs before the effects of the grenade wore off. 

Teal'c was on his feet the instant he recovered, taking in the situation at one glance before turning to Lewis who was struggling to sit up, one arm clutching his side.

'Major Carter, Lieutenant Lewis is in need of medical assistance,' Teal'c said, all eyes now on their injured team-mate.

'What happened?' Jack asked as Sam pulled Lewis's clothing away from his side revealing a deep wound with signs of scorching around the edges.

'He was hit by a staff blast before we were able to eliminate all the Jaffa,' Teal'c spoke calmly as he focussed once more on their main task. 'We must set the detonators immediately. The attack on the ships appears to have been successful and those Jaffa who survived will return to this location.'

'Ok. Carter, get Lewis to a safe distance, Teal'c and Brown, you're with me.' For a few minutes they were all busy laying their charges at strategic intervals, ensuring the force field remained in place for as long as possible so the charges would go off in an enclosed place and maximise the damage to the weapon.

'All set?' Jack asked when they were done. 'Let's move out then. Castleman?' He called into his radio. 'We're done here, how are you set?'

'We've taken out the ships, sir,' Castleman's voice responded, sounding breathless. 'We have wounded and we are being pursued by a small number of surviving Jaffa.'

'Roger that, Major,' Jack said, thinking quickly. 'We're on our way to your position to back you up, be there in five. Think you can hold out that long?'

'We'll do our best sir, Castleman out.'

'Carter, we're going to bail out the other team, I want you to take Lewis and get back to the 'gate, hole up there until we arrive. If we're not there in thirty, head back without us and send reinforcements.' Jack clicked the radio off before Sam could protest and led Teal'c and Brown towards Major Castleman and his team.

By the time they got there it was all over. A number of Jaffa lay dead and dying in a clearing, nearby were what was left of their teams. Three men were dead, another two so badly injured that their survival hung in the balance and of the remaining five, only one appeared to be uninjured. 

'Oh crap,' Jack exclaimed as he surveyed the carnage in front of him before speaking into his radio. 'Carter, we need reinforcements and medics here asap.'

'Yes sir, I'm on it,' Carter replied snappily and he could hear the 'gate dialling up even as the radio clicked off again.


	12. Part twelve

****

Camp Go'auld

Part twelve

Jonas and Kerry were together in the control room watching the teams return. They had been there when Sam came through with the injured Lieutenant Lewis, speaking briefly to General Hammond before returning to the planet with another two teams. Hammond had told them what had happened and the two of them had returned to the control room as soon as the gate activation alarm sounded.

Jonas, one hand on Kerry's shoulder, grimaced as two men came through on stretchers and were whisked off to the infirmary, followed by another three men, barely standing and supported by fellow officers before they too were spirited away by the medics. Then there was a pause before Colonel O'Neill walked through and signalled for the 'gate to be shut down.

Kerry turned to Jonas, her face as white as a sheet. 'Where are the others?' There was a note of panic in her voice.

'I guess they didn't make it,' Jonas said gently, his hand rubbing her shoulder soothingly.

Kerry shrugged his hand off before saying quietly, 'Five men.'

'Sorry?' Jonas didn't understand.

'Five men didn't come back, five men died,' Kerry explained as she backed further away from him, her voice shaking. 'And it's all my fault. If I hadn't told you about…about that place they would never have sent anyone and they'd still be alive. I…I have to get out of here…' With that, she turned and bolted for the exit, running straight into Jack on his way up.

'What's going on?' Jack asked, as he held on to Kerry, looking down at her as she struggled to free herself.

'I have to get out of here,' Kerry repeated herself, an overwhelming feeling of panic taking hold of her.

'Jonas?' Jack turned to Jonas for more information.

'Kerry is blaming herself for the men who died on the mission,' Jonas advised Jack. As Jonas moved towards him, Jack could feel Kerry cringing away and he tilted her face up, her eyes darting everywhere to avoid looking directly at him.

'Kerry, this is not your fault,' Jack told her firmly. 'Yes, some good men died, men who would not have died if you hadn't given us the information about the planet.' Jack's bluntness caught her attention and her eyes at last focussed on him as he continued speaking. 'If they hadn't died today, they would most likely have died next week, or next month or whenever Anubis had his weapon ready to use, and along with them we would have lost a lot more good men from the SGC, and if Anubis had succeeded in breaching our defences, a lot more innocent people would have died.'

Kerry glanced away, a thoughtful expression on her face until she looked at Jack again. 'I guess I hadn't thought of it like that,' she said softly, her voice still shaking. 'I…it's still hard to think about them…dying like that…' 

Jack squeezed her shoulder as he continued speaking. 'It never gets easy. But that's what keeps us human, stops us from becoming like the goa'uld who only want to conquer all they come across. You learn to deal with it, but it never gets easy.' He fell silent for a moment, then said, 'You going to be ok?' He looked at Kerry and saw her nod, a glimmer of hope coming back into her eyes. 'Good. In that case, I'm going to take a shower. Looks like the both of you could do with some sleep. Go. Now.' Jack watched them go, a smile on his face, before heading off to the shower.

************

Kerry dismissed the last class of the day and began cleaning the whiteboard she had been using to demonstrate the differences between symbols used by the Egyptians during various eras when she was startled by a hand on her shoulder. Whirling around, she came face to face with Jonas, Sam standing behind him.

'What is it this time?' She asked, her voice sounding resigned, belying the feeling of excitement that she felt. 'This is the third visit this month you know.'

'We've managed to get our hands on some tablets which used to belong to an acquaintance of ours,' Sam said cautiously, not wanting to give too much away. 'There's a lot going on at the moment and we're having trouble translating them.'

'What about Jonas? I thought he'd got all this translation stuff licked?' 

'I can probably make something of it - eventually,' Jonas explained, 'But we need the information quickly and you're a natural with the language.'

'Daniel Jackson was the only other person I've met who had the ability to focus on a language and be able to interpret it almost instantly while accounting for the variations of time and distance,' Sam added. 'We need this information quickly and accurately.'

'That's all very well,' Kerry protested, 'But the head of languages here isn't too happy about all the time I've taken off recently. I don't think he's going to be too happy if I disappear again.'

'I'll go and have a word with him, I'm sure I can sort something out for you,' Sam said as she headed for the door.

As soon as they were alone, Jonas moved closer to Kerry and put his arms around Kerry's neck, touching her forehead with his own.

'You're up to something aren't you?' Jonas asked, his voice full of suspicion.

'Here,' Kerry turned away from him reluctantly and handed him a piece of paper which he quickly read.

'What...?'

'Professor Carling was getting fed up with me not being around,' Kerry explained, 'He's also always been really good to me, said something about being worth my weight in gold or something,' she mumbled that last bit, looking a little embarrassed. 'Anyway, he managed to pull a few strings for me and I start at the University of Colorado Springs next semester.' Kerry looked anxiously at Jonas, waiting for his response.

'Why did you tell Major Carter that he was giving you a hard time then?'

'I wanted to tell you first when we were alone,' Kerry smiled slyly, mirrored by a smile from Jonas who put his arms back around her neck, capturing her lips with his own. 'Besides, it means you don't have to keep finding excuses to come up here anymore.' She returned Jonas's kiss and time seemed to stand still until a cough returned them to the present.

'So this is why you always have to come on these little trips?' Sam asked, amusement in her eyes as she returned to impart the information she had just received, realising that Jonas was way ahead of her.

'Major Carter!' Jonas exclaimed as he pulled away slightly but kept an arm wrapped around Kerry's waist.

'Well, it looks like congratulations are in order - if you two can bear to drag yourselves away, how about we go find a drink?' Sam smiled, leading the way from the classroom, allowing Jonas and Kerry a brief moment of privacy before following her.

****

THE END

Hope you enjoyed it - feedback is always appreciated.

****

DISCLAIMER: The characters mentioned in this story are the property of Showtime and Gekko Film Corp. The Stargate, SG-1, the goa'uld and all other characters who have appeared in the series STARGATE SG-1 together with the names, titles and backstory are the sole copyright property of MGM-UA Worldwide Television, Gekko Film Corp, Glassner/Wright Double Secret Productions and Stargate SG-1 Prod. Ltd. Partnership. This fanfic is not intended as an infringement upon those rights and solely meant for entertainment. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author.


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